Newsletter

St. Johns County man rescued in Flagler County swamp

FWC officers stand with a man who they rescued from a swampy area in northern Flagler County. The man may have been in the swamp for days and had been missing for nearly a week, an officer said.

Officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and deputies with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office pose with machetes they used to chop their way through a swamp to get to Guss Baker, a missing St. Johns County man, early Monday morning. The rescue effort took hours and involved multiple agencies.
Kneeling:
FWC Officer Ryan Campbell, FWC Officer Rich Wilcox, FWC Inv. Dustin Bonds
Standing:
Flagler Deputy Kevin Gomez, Flagler Deputy Jennifer Prevatt, FWC Officer Lee Lawshe

A 55-year-old St. Johns County man is alive after rescuers found him early Monday, mired deep in a swampy area of Flagler County.

According to a release from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, efforts to find Guss Baker began June 20 by Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies, its FireFlight helicopter and volunteers.

The Air 1 helicopter from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office responded and located Baker, using forward looking infrared (FLIR) thermal equipment to direct FWC officer Lee Lawshe, FWC officer Dustin Bonds and Flagler County Deputy Jennifer Prevatt to him. When they found Baker, he was perched, shivering, on a stump in ankle-to-knee-deep water. Lawshe decided that Baker would have to be hoisted out by helicopter because of his physical condition and the dense swamp.

The rescuers used jackets and their bullet-proof vests to try to warm Baker while officers Rich Wilcox and Ryan Campbell carried in water and blankets as they waited for the Seminole County Sheriff’s helicopter Alert 1 to arrive with its rescue hoist. Upon arrival, a rescuer was lowered from Alert 1 to Baker and the officers. Baker was then hoisted from the swamp to the helicopter and flown to nearby Flagler County paramedics who transported him by ambulance to Florida Hospital Flagler in Palm Coast.

Information received by the FWC indicates Baker is still recovering in the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.

“I’m sure it has been a harrowing few days for Mr. Baker,” said Lawshe. “Everyone involved in his rescue used their skills and training, and worked closely together to find him and bring him out safely. I am relieved we found him alive; I only wish we could have found him sooner.”